The story is amazing, a real tragedy that changed the course of the characters' lives. To me, the best part is how this could be a real story. You can feel it through the characters, as they make their life decisions, going to work to put food on the table and trying to live life in-between in the shadow of the tragedy and its effects.
I noticed, however, that a lot of people did NOT like the way it ended. Specifically, the girl which the protagonist chose. That's precisely why I said earlier that this is for the young adult crowd, not for teenagers. This anime is very in-your-face and pragmatic. And the closing of the story provides just that. Essentially, when push comes to shove, people's emotions are really an ephemeral thing. What matters in the bottom line is how much time you've spent with a person, how dedicated you are, how much you've invested of yourself... these are things that even I, when I think of my teenage self, probably wouldn't have understood. But after growing up and going through some relationships, you'll see that it ended JUST the way it should have.
I started watching it when I was 14-15, and I dropped it in episode 3, as I realized that this story is out of my scope. But I kept it in my mind for years, and finally watched it properly at 26.
